A long-shot Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate has suspended her campaign and endorsed Maine Gov. Janet Mills.

In a written statement on her campaign website Thursday, Daira Smith-Rodriguez, of Biddeford, also criticized past online comments by another Democratic candidate, Graham Platner, as “profoundly troubling and disqualifying.”

“It has become clear that Republicans are eager to see a crowded Democratic primary that divides our voices and strengthens theirs,” said Smith-Rodriguez, a former Air Force civilian contractor who joined the race last month. “I will not allow that to happen. There are incredible leaders in this race who are talking about the real issues facing Mainers — from affordability and health care to housing and climate.

“But as a survivor of military sexual assault, I cannot, in good conscience, indicate support or remain silent if there is even a possibility that someone who questions the reality of this crisis could be elevated to the United States Senate. It is simply too great a risk to those who still need a voice to fight for them.”

Smith-Rodriguez was referring to comments Platner, a former Marine, made on Reddit years ago in which he downplayed sexual assault in the military. He also made offensive comments about rural Mainers, police and gay people.

She is the second Democratic candidate in the 2026 Senate race to call Platner’s statements disqualifying. Jordan Wood, of Bristol, a former congressional staff member, called on Platner to drop out of the race earlier this week, both for his online posts and for revelations that he got a tattoo that resembles a Nazi symbol, which has since been covered up.

“Graham Platner’s Reddit comments and Nazi SS Totenkopf tattoo are disqualifying and not who we are as Mainers or as Democrats,” Wood said in a written statement Wednesday. “With Donald Trump and his sycophants demonizing Americans, spewing hate, and running roughshod over the Constitution, Democrats need to be able to condemn Trump’s actions with moral clarity. Graham Platner no longer can.”

Smith-Rodriguez said she’s endorsing Mills because “she leads with courage, conviction, and an unrelenting drive to deliver results for all Mainers.”

Platner is still dealing with the fallout of his online comments and his tattoo, but the first public polling on the race shows him with a huge lead over Mills. Among 510 Democratic primary voters polled by the University of New Hampshire Survey Center, 58% said they would vote for Platner compared to 24% for Mills.

That poll was conducted largely before most of Platner’s recent controversies had come to light.

On Thursday, Platner announced the hiring of a new campaign manager, Kevin Brown, who has national experience and was a senior adviser to Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s presidential campaign.

The winner of the Democratic Senate primary is expected to face Republican Sen. Susan Collins, who has held the seat since 1997, in the November 2026 general election.